A common goal of semiconductor design engineers is to maximize the density of electronic circuitry in a given area. This may include forming elements such as an array of storage capacitors and transistors as small as possible on a semiconductor wafer, and miniaturizing packaging of a semiconductor die.
Many different methods to miniaturize packaging of semiconductor devices have been used. Early designs of dual in-line packages (DIP's) comprised an encapsulated die attached to a lead frame having through-hole leads which passed through holes in a printed circuit board (PCB) and were soldered on the back side of the PCB. Zigzag in-line packages (ZIP's) were developed which comprised an encapsulated die oriented vertically on its side with through-hole leads in an attempt to reduce the horizontal area required by DIP devices. Small outline J-lead (SOJ) devices were developed which were surface mounted to the PCB. To decrease the vertical space required on the PCB, thin small outline packages (TSOP's) were developed which comprised a die which was background to thin the die and a much thinner encapsulation. Attempts have been made to eliminate encapsulation from the die altogether to form chip-on-board (COB) devices (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,818,698) which connect an unencapsulated die directly to a PCB by using tape automated bonding (TAB), z-axis conductive polymer, or some other method. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,138,434 and 6,320,253 discuss placing one or more unencapsulated devices in a socket which is attached to a printed circuit board.
Another way to reduce packaging is to stack semiconductor devices on top of each other. Attempts have been made to stack entire interconnected wafers (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,229,647 and 5,714,802). One difficulty in stacking semiconductor devices is the interconnection of memory elements (wafers or singularized dice) from one wafer or wafer section to another. Often, a via is desired which passes through the wafer without connecting to circuitry on the wafer, and another is desired which connects to circuitry on the wafer, for example by connecting to a bond pad on the wafer. Forming these two interconnection types requires two or more processes. Each different process performed on a semiconductor increases costs due to increased production time, materials, and scrap.
Each of the patents listed above is assigned to Micron Technology, Inc. and is incorporated herein by reference as if set forth in its entirety.
A method for forming an interconnect for stacked semiconductor wafers or wafer sections (semiconductor dice) which allows two types of interconnects to be formed simultaneously would be desirable.